Twilight's Thunder
by Namika Hikari
Summary: When a boy his sister appear outside Konoha on a rainy day, Kaito doesn't know what to make of them. Could it be that the two seemingly-innocent siblings have a dark past that puts the whole village in danger? Suggestions for chapter names greatly needed!
1. Tramping through the Rain

Rain poured down from the sky above Konoha, soaking anything unfortunate enough to be devoid of shelter. It was as if every body of water on the earth had been evaporated and moved to this very spot to rejoin the rivers down on the earth. They seemed intent on making a river there in the Leaf Village's territory.

Kaito Inoue was soaked through and weary despite standing under the leafy branches of a silver maple. His hands were shoved in the pockets of his shinobi vest to keep from the cold. The rain was anything but warm. Or dry. Kaito shook his head to free it from the water, dark brown hair plastering to his forehead above deep, midnight blue eyes. He huddled against the trunk, kicking a stone out from in front of him. What lousy luck that he was assigned to keep watch here during the torrential downpour.

Loyal to his village's missions, the chunin, hurried from his silver maple to under an elm, pressing against the bark to hide from the cloudburst. Kaito had been assigned to patrol a quarter of the perimeter, and he had already accomplished half of that so far. But he still had another eighth of the circumference to go, and the rain wasn't helping.

Dashing from shelter to shelter, the older teen was able to keep relatively dry; which wasn't saying much considering the competition. By now, nearly everywhere he stepped was a puddle, and the Inoue boy began to long for the gates to Konoha where his patrol ended. Even keeping a close lookout, Kaito failed in spotting anything unusual. Eventually he stopped being scrutinous, focusing more on keeping as try as possible. Because of his lack of focus, he nearly stumbled on the two figures.

In the middle of the pathway to Konoha laid two humans. The larger of the two was a male in his tender teens, the other a girl seven or so. The older of the two was a tall boy with dirty blond hair and a narrow face. The girl was facedown in the mud, her auburn-brown hair trailing everywhere. They appeared to be siblings or friends, for there was no sign of struggle. The two must've been traveling together, but there was no sign of supplies on either of them. _Perhaps they had been mugged_, Kaito pondered, still staring. They both seemed rather thin, so the mugging would've had to occur long ago; they had been without supplies for a few days at least.

Kaito stared at them for a good minute until a bubble appeared in the mud next to the girl. He snapped out of his frozen trance, realizing that at least the girl was alive and that she'd drown if kept in the mud like that. Dashing to her side, the chunin raised her head from the muck and cleared her mouth and nostrils. The girl sucked in a huge breath, then went still, breathing faintly. Kaito checked her pulse; slow, but definitely there. He breathed a sigh of relief, placing the child face-up against the nearest tree.

The Leaf Village shinobi turned to the boy next. He pushed the golden-brown hair from the boy's face. Both of the travelers were so young and malnourished. _They'll have to get medical attention back at the village._

_The Village!_

Kaito had clean forgotten about everything besides the mysterious intruders, even the rain. The remembrance seemed to bring the downpour to pummel him harder, punishing him for forgetting it. He stood up to his full height - rather tall for a seventeen-year-old - and grabbed a branch. He swung himself into a tree, climbing higher and higher. He was reluctant to leave the unconscious pair, but he had to see how far the village was from their current position. Even with the rain clouding his view, Kaito knew he'd be capable of seeing the village's huge gates from anywhere nearby. No rain, no matter how vicious, could blot out their presence.

Pushing soaked hair from in front of his face, Kaito focused on the direction of Konoha. He was nearest the northern entrance, so he faced south. It was obviously south, for a special ninjutsu showed him the direction. Sure enough, the magnificent walls of Konoha were visible through the gloom quite clearly. They weren't too distant either, as Kaito noticed with pleasure. He quickly descended the tree to find the duo exactly as he had left them, although the girl's face was cleaner. The chunin dismissed it as an act of the rain and turned her over. She was wearing a plain yellow T-shirt and black pants with the tattered remains of a black rain cloak wrapped around her. Her left shoulder was exposed slightly, and Kaito was shocked to find light, aqua-ish blue skin underneath.

Moving more of the cloak to the side, Kaito revealed an intricate tattoo designed in an unfamiliar pattern. The colors were nearly indistinguishable in the rain and mud, but the chunin knew that whoever had dyed this girls' skin must've been a master. Some details were so fine that he couldn't tell where the tattoo ended and the actual skin began. Of course, the current conditions weren't helping.

Restoring the garment to her shoulder, Kaito pulled some invisible wire from his pack. He tightly bound the girls' hands behind her back, knowing that the Seventh Hokage wouldn't have expected anything less, but left space for the girl to have circulation and so the wire didn't cut into her skin. He was a bit less lenient with the boy, tying him with the last of his cord.

Kaito sighed. Now he'd have to drag them back to Konoha in the rain. Suddenly he noticed it, and it was amazing that he hadn't noticed it before. Although it appeared to be raining just as hard as ever around him, the rain seemed to have lightened above him. Sure, it was still raining steadily, but none of the skin-pounding raindrops he had experienced earlier. Thanking his stars, Kaito set to work dragging the pair back to Konoha.

It was tedious work, but luckily the two travelers had collapsed on the path. It would've been devastating to drag the pair through the forest and undergrowth. Kaito couldn't think of any jutsu to use for this particular dilemma except Shadow Clone Jutsu, which he hadn't yet mastered. Sighing, the shinobi continued dragging his find towards the looming presence of Konoha.

After what seemed like hours in the puzzling rain phenomena, Kaito reached the gates to Konoha. He pounded on the door angrily.

"Hey! Ayame-chan! Let me in!" Kaito bellowed. He continued pounding for a further thirty seconds until the door finally creaked. Slowly they rolled inwards, eventually coming to a grinding halt. Kaito sighed in relief, hurrying to pull the bound travelers under the roof of the gatehouse.

A blond-haired figure with pink streaks leapt down from the gatehouse office. Her pink and lilac outfit shone with a blast of color as the chunin twirled a kunai. "State your name and business please," she ordered with authority.

Kaito just glared at her incredulously. Did she not see his load? "Kaito Inoue, as you well know, Ayame-chan. As for my business, I found these two lumps outside unconscious in the rain. I'm planning on taking them to Taiki-sama so he can decide what to do with them."

Suzuki Ayame stuck a manicured fingernail in her mouth, as if pondering. "Sorry, Kaito-kun. Hokage-sama is busy in a meeting with Osamu Siyame, Feudal lord of the Village Hidden in Embers."

Suddenly the golden-brown haired boy shuddered. His eyes cracked open, revealing grayish eyes. "V-Village... Embers... no... stop... get away!... Run, mother!" He slumped against his sister, unconscious once more.

Ayame was staring at the boy as if just noticing him. Suddenly she snapped out of it, returning her gaze to Kaito. She sighed, twirling a lock of lemony hair around her index finger. "I suppose we should get them to the medics. We'll explain to Hokage-sama later." She turned to the tinted windows to the gatehouse office. "Tayuchi-san, watch the gates. I need to take care of this."

"Sure thing," called a faded voice from behind the windows. Ayame turned to Kaito.

"Come on then," she ordered, grabbing the boy, "let's get to Miyuki-san and get these two fixed." She lifted the boy up almost effortlessly, dashing out into Konoha. Kaito was taken off guard, but grabbed the girl and ran after Ayame. He glimpsed her tattoo once more, and some aspect of it caught his eye. _Where have I seen that symbol before? _He wondered, standing stock still.

"Come on, Kaito!" Ayame's voice snapped him from his ponderings. Shaking away the thought he dashed after Ayame, trying to keep from brooding over the feeling as he brought his find to Miyuki and the other medic-nins.


	2. Medical Attention

The rain continued to fall outside, showing no signs of stopping. An icy-blue haired teen of thirteen stared out the window of the infirmary, sighing forlornly. One lock of hair hung in front of her right eye, the rest trailing down to between her shoulder blades where they spiked out. A headband was tied around her neck like a necklace bearing the symbol of Konoha. She stared at it in the reflection, tracing the symbol on the misty glass with a fingerless glove.

Miyuki turned back to the limp body of a comrade on the cot before her. She ran her fingers over his chest, placing her palm upon his heart. Luckily this aspect of him was working, steadily and healthily. His whole body was paralyzed due to a broken back. Miyuki stood up, pacing to a monitor. The medic-nin stared at the heartbeat screen, seeking comfort from the one steady, healthy aspect of his body.

Walking away from her patient's cot, Miyuki deeply regretted that she could do no more at the moment for the poor jounin. She left the room, pacing down the curving hallway. Deep brown eyes gazed at each name of the patients and their status. Finally the medical ninja reached the medical supply room. She reached for the knob, entering the room with the door closing behind her.

Miyuki walked over to a counter, lifting the white shoulder-strap bag onto it. She opened the nearly empty sack and began to fill it with various supplies. _Food pills, blood pills, chakra pills, bandages..._ The blue-haired medic-nin listed off the supplies as she added them to her bag silently.

The doors opened with a slam, startling Miyuki and causing her to drop several pills. Cursing under her breath, she spun around, clutching the throwing knife she kept at her hip. Her eyes widened as she saw two soaking wet figures, panting and covered in mud. It took a few seconds for Miyuki to realize that they were Kaito Inoue and Ayame Suzuki.

The medical ninja glared at the two, scowling under her breath. "I don't suppose you had the chance to wash yourselves," She asked sarcastically, bending down to pick up the pills. She examined a broken one, scooping the liquid into the pill and throwing it away with the others. Finally Miyuki faced them again, neutrality on her face.

Unsurprisingly, Ayame spoke up first. "Kaito-kun found two unconscious travelers outside the gates of Konoha. They were collapsed on the path about a hundred yards from the gate. Kaito-kun bound their arms to be safe," she added. "I think they need medical attention; they look beat up." Ayame placed a hand on her hip, looking imperiously and pompously at the younger teen. Miyuki scowled again, standing up to her full height.

"Take me to them," she ordered swiftly, asserting herself as one of higher authority. Ayame looked taken aback, but obliged. Kaito trailed behind, quiet and looking uncomfortable. Miyuki shot him a sidelong glance. _What's got him all uptight? _She wondered as she closed the door to the supply room. The trio walked down the hall quickly, and Miyuki began to fret, as healers do. _I hope they aren't in critical condition._ The medic-nin didn't think she could handle a death at her hands.

Finally, Ayame stopped at an unlabeled door. Miyuki fingered the inscriptions. "Occupied by: Blank; Status: Blank". She curled a lock of hair around her finger, gazing at the icy-blue look with big brown eyes. By staring at the light blue color, she acquired a state of calmness. Miyuki had done extensive studies on colors affecting moods, and she had come up with the conclusive data that yellow, formerly thought of as a happy color, actually agitated patients, while light blue gave a calm feeling. Darker blue simply helped with sleeping and a state of loss, while light pink made most female patients comfortable. The medic-nin was happy that her hair color could calm patients, so she kept it visible at all times.

"Miyuki-san?" Kaito's urgent voice broke Miyuki out of her trance. A spot of blood was on the medic-nin's finger from her tracing the inscription. She was rubbing it around the letters. Recoiling, Miyuki quickly pulled a wipe from her restocked bag and cleaned the plaque, healing her finger with chakra as she wiped.

Miyuki sighed, scratching the back of her head and staring at the lock of hair again to calm herself. She exhaled deeply. "Let's go in," she suggested, reaching for the knob before the mud-covered chunin could. _At least the doorknob won't be soiled, _Miyuki thought positively. She couldn't say as much for the floor. The medic-nin glanced over the trail of mud they had left with a sigh, making a mental note to get someone to clean up the mess.

The oaken door opened silently due to well-oiled hinges. The healers didn't want squeaky hinges disturbing a patient that needed sleep. Miyuki led the two mud-covered ninjas into the room, leaving Kaito to close the door behind them.

Two travelers lay on beds in the room. Well, one rested on the bed, and the other was lying on a folding cot from the closet. Ayame shifted uncomfortably. "I thought they needed separate beds," she confessed, running her fingers through her pink and lemon hair. Miyuki nodded absently, examining the patients.

She first walked over to the cot. A seven-year-old girl was laid in it, moderately cleaned of mud. Her hair was wavy and fell to her shoulders, colored brown with a touch of auburn in the highlights. Miyuki felt her forehead and was relieved to feel only a slight fever. She gave the girl a medicine tablet, stroking her small neck until the pill was swallowed. The medical ninja patted down the girl's limbs for broken bones, finding a broken radius in the girl's right arm. Miyuki reached for her bag, only to find Kaito handing her the bandages already, looking concerned.

"Here, Miyuki-san," Kaito handed her the bandages. Miyuki blinked in surprise, nodding in thanks. Swiftly and with practiced ease, the healer-nin wrapped the girl's arm with bandages.

Ayame poked Miyuki on the shoulder. "Miyuki-san? The boy is moving."

Miyuki turned around to the boy. Her eyes widened as she saw him thrashing, eyelids fluttering. He had straight golden brown hair that laid flat against his head and fell to the bottom of the neck. His face was flushed and he was twitching violently, mumbling incoherent words.

The medic-nin leaned forward, trying to make out the ravings. "No... Take Nami... run... save... limit... no... Mother... won't leave you... no... go!... run!" The boy then lay still, breathing shallowly.

Miyuki spun around, fire in her normally mild brown eyes. "Get Akihiro-kohai and Chiyoko-kohai, now!" She barked at Ayame and Kaito. Startled, the two ninjas hurried out of the room and into the hall to find Miyuki's students.

The healer stared at the boy, placing a hand on his forehead. It was burning hot so that Miyuki had to take it away soon after touching the skin. She sighed, popping a pill into the boy's mouth and helping him swallow. _Oh, Aki-kun, Chiyo-chan, come quickly!_


	3. Back to the Academy

A crow sat under the shelter of the large leaves in an oak, shivering in the cold rain. It blinked once, watching the world with beady black eyes. A movement on the limb below the bird's perch disturbed it, and the crow ruffled its feathers, cawing. Two figures sat high in the trees outside Konoha, staring down at the muddy ground below them. They seemed indifferent to the rain, and oblivious to the crow's call. Suddenly they leapt from the tree, silent as they splashed onto the ground with inhuman speed. They were both cloaked in black with fishnet veils over their faces and black gloves and boots. Obviously they weren't meant to be recognized. The shorter of the two leaned down to get a closer look at what seemed to be unremarkable mud. He breathed in deeply, then stood up. He nodded to his companion, and they both disappeared.

The crow winged slowly down to the lowest branch of the tree, blinking at the mud. Nothing was there. It was unremarkable mud. It cawed again, its attention moving to a large, sheltering leaf on top of the tree. It winged away from the unremarkable mud, not knowing of the two travelers who had laid there not an hour past.

--

The door burst open, shining light from the hall into the dim room. Miyuki blinked as her eyes contracted, focusing on the faces of her students. Two golden-haired twins blundered into the room, panting hard.

"Miyuki-senpai! We got here as fast as we could!" The boy gasped, blinking in unison with his sister as their eyes dilated. He brushed long bangs out of his face, revealing light hazel eyes. His sister was carrying a large medical kit, top of her hair untidily thrown into a loose bun. The rest was pigtail-braided neatly. It seemed as if she was in the middle of doing her hair when she was summoned.

"Chiyoko-kohai," Miyuki addressed the 11-year-old roughly, "What did you bring?"

The golden-haired girl nodded, flicking open the locks on her kit easily. She listed off the items as she took them out, laying them neatly on the table. Miyuki nodded in acknowledgment, seeming distracted.

The icy-blue-haired girl spun around, placing her hand on the boy's forehead again. The temperature was the same as always down the the hundredth of a degree, Miyuki's ninjutsu confirmed it. "This boy is in critical condition," she barked to her apprentices who were taken aback by her tone. "We have to save him." Miyuki didn't elaborate, although she could tell that the twins were dying to know why.

Chiyoko and Akihiro positioned themselves next to one another and across the cot from Miyuki who had the medical supplies behind her. Miyuki looked up, the calmness in her eyes slightly unnerving.

"Here we go," she muttered, reaching for the bag.

--

Kaito ran a hand through his hair as he sat outside the door to the travelers' room. Ayame was sitting on the bench, twirling a kunai boredly as she kicked her feet. The girl blew a lock of lemon hair out of her face, watching it fall right back into place with a scowl. Finally she stood up, stretching. With a flick of her wrist, she embedded the kunai in the wall an inch from Kaito's nose.

"Get up, lazy," she ordered. "Let's go visit the Academy."

Kaito groaned, pulling the kunai from the wall and pocketing it smoothly. He shot Ayame a look as he rose, taking his time. The ninja was reluctant to leave Miyuki and the others, he was curious about the survivors. _Hopefully they'll live, _he told himself, _they could be useful to Hokage-sama._

"Why?" The chunin complained moodily, running a hand through his brown hair. He had been greatly relieved, when he became a chunin, that the job of Academy teacher had been taken. Sitting behind a desk all day was no life for him; he was an adventurer, a ninja who wanted to go on missions!

Ayame glared at him with stinging blue eyes, and Kaito flinched back. "Because, _Kaito Inoue,_ I happen to know that Masaki-san asked you to help him out about a month ago. But of course, you didn't believe that you had to help him! So I volunteered us both. Now let's _go!_" The lemon-haired chunin looked straight into Kaito's honey-brown eyes. The boy winced, remembering how he had deserted Masaki Noguchi when he had asked for help with the brats at the Academy. He had avoided the responsible chunin for weeks to keep from the school.

A hard hand gripped Kaito's arm, dragging him down the hall. "I can walk on my own!" He complained, but Ayame's gaze never met his, and her grip never faltered as she led him to the Academy.

The rain had slowed to a hard drizzle by now, so the chunin were able to keep reasonably dry as they wandered through the town to the Academy. All the time, Ayame never lost hold of Kaito, and he was starting to get embarrassed. He never thought he'd be happy to see the looming figure of the school before him. He rushed inside, Ayame still ahead of him.

A brown-haired boy with dark, dark green eyes stared at them as they walked in. He waved furiously at Kaito as he walked in, but the chunin just ducked his head, not meeting his brother's eyes. Ayame waved her fingers at the boy before heading to the front of the class.

A tall, tan boy of sixteen smiled kindly at Ayame, his odd yellow eyes coldly focused on Kaito's features. The chunin winced, looking away guiltily. Masaki turned completely to Ayame, taking his gaze of Kaito to speak to the younger chunin.

"Ayame-chan! How are you?" He asked, patting her shoulder. "It has been so long since I've seen you." Masaki turned to Kaito, narrowing his eyes. "Or you, Kaito."

The brown-haired child raised his hand, wagging it furiously. Masaki chuckled softly. "Yes, Takumi-kun?" He asked kindly, raising an eyebrow at the boy's eagerness.

"HI, KAITO!" Takumi screeched eagerly, dark green eyes sparkling. Kaito groaned audibly, adverting his eyes to the door. Why did his brother have to be so, so hyperactive? Ayame's glare caught his eye, and Kaito turned to Takumi, waving feebly.

"Er, hi, Takumi," he muttered, quickly shoving his hands back in the pockets of his pants. His brother beamed, yelling some more outrageous greetings until he was satisfied. Kaito distractedly looked at the clock, sighing inwardly. It was merely one-o-clock; too late for lunch and not nearly close enough to the end of class.

Kaito turned back to Masaki, shifting uncomfortably. "So, what do you want us to do?" He asked the younger chunin. Masaki chuckled coldly, eyes boring into Kaito, making him uncomfortable.

"You'll see."

--

Kaito spent the rest of the day until six-o-clock, way after class had been dismissed, cleaning the Academy. He scrubbed the floors, washed the windows, sprayed the desks, and even cleaned the bathrooms. He was worn out by the end of the day, grumbling to himself as he exited the squeaky-clean building. His hate for the place had increased ten-fold.Ayame was waiting for him outside, chatting with Masaki with her back to the door. Kaito tapped her on the shoulder, and she turned about with a start.

"Finally!" Ayame complained, getting to her feet. "We've been sitting here for hours!"

Kaito glared at Masaki. "You didn't have to wait for me," he grumbled, inwardly glad that she had. Ayame grabbed his arm again, pulling him out into the mist that was all that remained of the downpour that morning.

"Get off me!" Kaito hissed, yanking his arm from the other chunin. Ayame glared at him coldly.

"I was bringing you back to the Infirmary!" She spat back, folding her arms defiantly.

Kaito raised his voice, "You don't have to wrench my arm from its socket or impale me with your nails to do so! Just tell me where you're going next time!"

Ayame sniffed importantly and stomped off for her house, abandoning the visit to the Infirmary. Kaito scowled, abashed that Masaki had seen the incident. Turning around, he saw the black-haired Academy teacher smirking like a satisfied cat. Spinning on his heel, Kaito stomped towards the Infirmary in heated anger, anything to get away from Masaki and Ayame. The girl's tattoo sprung into his head again, but he didn't acknowledge it in his rage. Nor did he acknowledge the small boy following him to the Infirmary, his dark green eyes sparkling.


End file.
